A Burning Glass analysis found the Trenton-MercerMetropolitan Statistical Area boasted a higher concentration of data science workers—193 per every 10,000 employed people, than any other MSA in the country.

In raw numbers, it’s a different story. Trenton had 4,544 data science job postings in the 12 months we examined (May 2017-April 2018). That’s relatively few compared to the MSAs covering New York (87,554), Washington D.C. (51,958), or Chicago (36,881).

Why the concentration in Trenton? The answer becomes clearer when you look at the major employers in the region. The big story around big data in the last few years is how the technique has spread throughout the business world as more organizations try to become more efficient and glean insights into their customers. The list in Trenton ranges from pharmaceuticals and health insurance to manufacturing and higher education.

Metro Area

Job Postings

Job Postings per 10,000 people employed, last 12 months

Trenton, NJ

4544

193

California-Lexington Park, MD

769

179

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA

17978

175

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV

51958

173

San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA

33974

152

Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC

15333

142

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA

4845

140

Lansing-East Lansing, MI

2763

137

Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT (Metropolitan NECTA)

5458

126

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH (Metropolitan NECTA)

29783

121

Carson City, NV

330

118

Tallahassee, FL

1759

108

Raleigh, NC

5927

105

Huntsville, AL

2113

102

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA

24033

100

Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO

13663

100

Corvallis, OR

356

99

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA

18109

99

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA

87554

99

Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT (Metropolitan NECTA)

5551

98

Madison, WI

3575

97

Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI

17430

96

Durham-Chapel Hill, NC

2653

94

Austin-Round Rock, TX

8538

93

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD

24689

93

In some of the MSAs on the list, the number of job postings is fairly small (California-Lexington Park, MD, for example, had 769 data science postings in the 12-month period, but that still works out to 179 postings for every 10,000 employed). Since this region is close to Washington, jobs are heavily tilted toward government and defense contracting, and the big data employers reflect that. The major big data employers include Booz Allen Hamilton, General Dynamics, and the U.S. Navy.